Fiammetta was oddly touched by her situation, struck afresh by the goodwill of a stranger who had put his neck on the line for her, even when he had seemed so young, so naïve. It was something she would have done for another, and she admired it though she would never say so. For once,she had been locked in a situation from where there would be no escape and, although she had never before accepted aid, she had grown up enough to recognise that she wouldn't still be breathing if it wasn't for the monochrome male. Still, his nearness made her uncomfortable and it was sometime before she could bring herself to face him. They were so close in that confined space with the winter churning outside that their very breaths intertwined to coalesce on the earthen ceiling above them. Fiam couldn't help but think of her ruined face, and she ran her tongue along her teeth, well aware how they glowed now that no dark lips kept them in check. In those two orbs of pale yellow she could sense that the male shared her unease, his muscles tensed as though he were preparing to leap away at any moment. Good, he was not so childish then that he trusted every canid on the street.
She smirked at the thought before it faded on her lips, leaving her face expressionless enough so that he would notice the subtle change in it when she dipped her head to him, and softened that aggressively swirling eye.

A rush of air escaped the youngsters lips and he relaxed, moulding to her as she shifted in her position, his warmth bringing new life to her frozen limbs and turned away from the watcher, examining more thoroughly the cave in which they lay, or at least pretending to do so. As though gleaning courage from her apparent disinterest in him, the nameless wraith breathed a few sincere words at her in reply to the ones she had uttered but a few moments prior. She was surprised at their clarity, as well as the sheer kindness and hope that bound them. Either the young warrior had seen little of the world, or he believed in the greater good despite all the evil around him. She tried hard to remember if she had once been thus, but she could not think of even a single second where she had been as desperately eager to look on the brighter side of things. No, she had always been fiery and venomous, a concoction now fortified by a vengeful thirst for blood.

The male did not notice her sudden introspection, and she felt him draw breath again, preparing to speak. She twitched her ears in readiness to receive his words, but did not move her head from where it lay on her paws to catch the glance he threw her way. His concern was slightly ingratiating, but Fiam felt inclined to let it slide, since he had lugged her prone form all the way from the Aplos into the forest, hardly an easy task for one so youthful. Taking a few moments to gather her thoughts, the silence around them deepened. Only the steady shushing of the wind and creaking of branches could be heard, although it was muffled by the dirt. A whiff of badger scent struck the fiery femme square in the jaw, and she sneezed suddenly and repeatedly, her body stiffening with the effort and her ears slicking to her skull from the pain. Her shoulder throbbed constantly and her ravaged side burned even though it was pressed to the flank of the black and white boy. Blinking swiftly to dull the berry-bright gleam of pain in her eye, she replied in as steady a voice as she could manage, “No, that's alright. Your warmth is welcome,” and then, almost as an afterthought, “What may I call my rescuer?”

sidekick would have been less like acid on her tongue, but she had to admit that a rescuer he was, and she was sick of addressing him as stranger and wraith in her mind. She began to lick her paws for something to take her mind off the agony, and tasted the freshness of the river on them. Its flavour reminded her of the events of the night and she stifled a growl, not wanting to alarm the stranger lest he start and brush against her sore skin. She ached to be well again, to be outside and hunting those that had maimed her, but she knew it would be many weeks before she was well enough to challenge any wolf and, in the meantime, at least she had company.



Fiammetta - Female - No Home - No Family - 4YO - 28 inches, 32 pounds